Lessons in Volleyball (and other words containing the letter V)
by Kankokujinpoi
Summary: Arashi Saiko is a new student at Karasuno. She joins the volleyball club as a manager in training. She learns about volleyball, friendship, and even how to let her guard down.
AN: Okay, so. This is a request from the lovely Kiko Mizushima. It's my first time writing an OC in quite a while, so I tried my best. Also, first time writing a non Kurotsuki fic for the fandom! It might seemed rushed, but I think more of my stories are... Thanks for reading. Kiko, I hope I didn't dissapoint!

"It's a lot of fun, but a lot of work, too! Ah! I didn't meant to make it sound like you couldn't do it. I know you can do it. I'm just saying it's hard work, but a lot of fun, too. Wait I just said that... I mean... you'll have fun working hard? Or it's hard work having fun? Erm..."

"Yachi, it's okay, I know what you mean," Arashi tries to comfort the blonde girl walking next to her. She's fighting a yawn, trying not to let the early morning hour get to her.

She's not sure how she found herself in this situation, but here she is, at her new school at day break. She didn't have time to brush her hair properly, so her silver hair is a little messy at the ends. She's not too worried about it, though.

Actually, she does know how she found herself in this situation. Yachi Hitoka, that's how. When she started school at Karasuno a few weeks ago, she hadn't been... the greatest at making new friends. Some of the boys in her class were fun to hang out with and have lunch with, but as much as Arashi likes hanging out with the guys, she gets enough of that at home. Living with two brothers is more than enough 'hanging out with the guys' time. She missed her old friends from her old school. A few messages were exchanged between them, but it's hard to keep up close relationships when you're so far away. And it's definitely not the same going shopping at the mall with a group of guys than it is your two best girl friends. It just seemed that girls at Karasuno weren't that interested in girls like Arashi.

So when she ran into Yachi surrounded by a few girls in the bathroom, she tried to mind her own business. But once she heard the blonde girl's silent sniffles, well, the rest is history. Well, the days of Yachi being bullied in the first year bathroom are history. Arashi's familiarity with the first year detention room? Probably not.

"Great! I'm glad you agreed to come along. It'll be a lot of help with two of us. Ah... you don't have to carry all of that at once..." Yachi reaches out her hand like she's going to take one of the two water coolers from Arashi's arms.

"It's okay, I don't mind," Arashi hoists the two coolers, "where to?"

By the time the two make it to the bus, all of the boys are beginning to line up outside. Hinata waves and Arashi mirrors the action. Seeing the bright orange hair gives Arashi a small sense of comfort. The two are in the same class together and immediately gravitated toward each other. One would think their personalities were too similar, Arashi being one of the only girls in the class to keep up with Hinata's stories about their matches. Those stories, along with Yachi's pleading, are what brought Arashi to this bus in the first place.

"Arashi! You're coming to our summer camp with us!?"

Oh... there is one other reason.

"Here, let me help you with those," Nishinoya takes one cooler off of Arashi's hands before she has the chance to object. Actually, before Arashi can react, she's empty handed and sees Nishinoya's back walking further away from her. Both coolers in hand.

"Um... Arashi?" She feels a poke on her side.

"What? What? Is there a bug on me!?" Arashi turns in a few circles, hoping to shake any pest that could be on her. She looks around to see the whole Karasuno volleyball team watching the scene. A few are snickering, a few are trying to stop those snickering from snickering, and Kageyama looks like he's sleeping standing up.

Yachi's smile gives away the atmosphere. Poor Arashi, "I was just going to say... we're ready to get on the bus."

"Oh, okay." Arashi watches the third year vice-captain herd the boys onto the bus. He offers her a smile that matches Yachi's.

Once Yachi makes sure all boys are on the bus she turns to Arashi, this time a different smile on her face, "also, you were staring."

Arashi feels her cheeks heat, tears threatening to rush to her eyes. She can't help it when she's embarrassed. But it's the smile on Yachi's face again that stops those tears from flowing. There's no malice in it, almost more excited than anything.

"Come on, I hear they're serving shrimp teriyaki for lunch," Yachi leads Arashi to the bus, linking arms with the slightly taller girl. While Arashi feels a little silly next to the cutely dressed girl. She tries to roll up the sleeves on her hooded sweatshirt. Luckily, her nice pair of shorts were clean.

Arashi tries to read her comic she brought with her on the bus ride, but she's too nervous. She's not sure what to expect at this camp. She likes playing sports, but has never joined a team herself, so watching such a tight knit group is a sight she's not used to either. Even if there's bickering and poking and prodding, it's obvious everyone on the bus has a strong connection to their team. Almost like a family.

Arashi falls asleep while reading her comic on the bus, dreaming of feeling that connection.

"Arashi...Arashi..."

"ARASHI!"

The silver haired girl nearly falls out of the bus seat she's made herself comfortable in. She's about to yell at whoever thought it a good idea to scream her name in her ear to wake her up when she sees Nishinoya's face close to her own.

"You were sleeping, no one could wake you up." Nishinoya's almond brown eyes are reflecting Arashi's royal blue ones.

"Oh... sorry about that," Arashi mumbles, trying to smooth the messy ends of her hair.

Nishinoya gives her a toothy smile and offers his hand to help her up, "come on, the others are waiting for us."

The more Arashi stares at the second year the more his smile fades. She's not sure how to take him. He seems to be a little too nice to her. Which is a good thing! It is! Really. But... what's the catch?

"You should have just left me on the bus." Arashi stands, not taking Nishinoya's hand. She inwardly cringes at how cold her voice sounds, but she doesn't trust guys that are just so openly nice. Again. What's the catch.

Nishinoya cocks his head to one side. Arashi knows her iciness is unwarranted, but it's her first reaction to guys with nice smiles and even nicer bodies. The look on Nishinoya's face gives away his confusion. He looks like a kicked puppy, but he recovers quickly.

"Ah, well we can't start without the full team! Whenever you're ready. We'll be waiting." Nishinoya gives her another hesitant smile and walks off the bus. Leaving Arashi alone with her own guilt.

The first two days of camp go by like a blur for Arashi. It's mostly about understanding the game and what her role as a manager meant for the team.

She didn't have enough time to think about anything except the fundamentals of volleyball. Bump, set, spike, ace, kill, block, feint, ask her anything and she'll have the answer. It took her a while to understand the technical side of things (some of it reminded her a little too much of schoolwork), but Tsukishima and Yamaguchi helped her with that. They explained to her that there's so much more than just the physical aspect of things; being taller (although Tsukishima notes it is quite a nice advantage to have), quicker, stronger, those things are obvious when it comes to the game. It's reading the plays, targeting for certain players, enhancing the strength of others, those things the two taught her.

Tsukishima is growing on her. At first he saw him just like Hinata and Kageyama did: arrogant, rude, selfish. But then she realized that he's just a little more conservative when it comes to expressing his emotions. Yamaguchi she immediately wanted to hug and protect. Somehow, along with Yachi, she had fallen into the small group of first years. By day three of camp, the six do most everything together.

The fourth day was spent on watching her new friends grow into stronger versions of themselves. Up until that point a lot of their plays had been hit or miss. Hinata and Kageyama even hit a rough patch in their normally in-sync behavior. Even Tsukishima seemed like he was working through some issues of his own. Her main focus had been keeping her new family together. Like Yachi, she grew a soft spot for the boys and seemed to worry a little more about the first years than the otheres.

The third years reminded her of her oldest brother; hardworking and strong. The second year, like her second brother; friendly and care-free. They were a good match for each other. There's something about the first year boys that make Arashi want to care for them in a motherly way. Protect them at all costs. So when she saw each one of them come into their own, she felt like crying. That and also because of how hot it had gotten during camp.

By the last day of camp, Arashi really did feel like part of the team. Like she was just as much a part of the game as the six players on the court. She laughed with them, cried with them, and even threw a few punches with them. Honestly, she couldn't wait for school to start up again just so she had more of an excuse to see her new friends.

She had done a good job a steering clear of Nishinoya as well. Not that she didn't like Nishinoya, but after the bus incident, something about the look in his eyes scared her. It made her heart beat fast and had her stomach tumbling. Definitely not a good sign. It wasn't hard to do. Most of the camp had been spent with the other managers. The only time she really saw the brunette was during meals and on the court when there was no threat of him walking over and giving her that smile that shakes her bones.

The more she watched him from a far, though, the more she wanted to see him up close again. Like she had on the bus the first day of camp. His receives were quicker than ever by the last day. She inwardly squealed when she watched the Libero successfully set a perfect ball to their Ace.

He had gotten better at setting the ball. Faster reflexes (if that's even possible), too. More than that, he seemed like he's matured more. His carefree attitude timed a little better. Explaining things to his kouhai's a little easier. And his body... abs a little more defined. Calf muscles bigger from all the jumping practice. Not that Arashi was staring... His hair had gotten longer, the roots-

"Hey! Arashi!"

Speak (or think) of the devil.

"Ah... hello..." Arashi knows her cheeks are red from embarrassment. Had she been caught staring at the boy? Not that she stares at the boy. Is that why he's come over to join her near the coolers? He should be packing up his things, getting ready to leave. She looks around for Yachi's help, but she's too busy talking with Yamaguchi to notice Arashi's silent pleas. Hinata and Kageyama are arguing about how to pack their bags and it looks like Tsukishima is too busy talking with the other teams.

"How was your first experience at summer camp?" Nishinoya starts to tip the second cooler to match the angle of the one Arashi is holding. He starts draining the jug of water and there's that smile again...

"Good," Arashi mutters, worried she's going to snap again. It's just something about that nice smile and easy voice. She tries to focus on the running water from the cooler, but Nishinoya interrupts her thoughts again.

"It seems like you really got the hang of it. I'm really glad you're just as passionate as we are about the game," then suddenly, the smile fades from Nishinoya's face. "I wish we could have talked more, though." He rubs the back of his neck and finds his own cooler much more interesting than Arashi.

If the older boy's smile causes her stomach to do flips and his voice to feel like she's floating, then seeing the smile fade is like getting all of the air knocked out of her. Like she's being shoved into a shoe box and promptly being stepped on, causing her heart to be smashed into tiny pieces.

"Talk... more?" The water in Arahi's cooler is fully drained. There's nothing else to keep her eyes from connecting with the brown ones staring at her.

"Yeah! I mean... I was kind of hoping we could get to know each other on this trip." The usual easiness of the boy's voice is nowhere to be found.

"Really?"

"Well, yeah," Nishinoya's cooler is fully drained now, "I think you're a pretty cool girl."

Before the conversation can go any further Suga is yelling their names, calling them over to the bus. Nishinoya takes the cooler out of Arashi's hands and grabs his own. He starts walking back, this time giving Arashi an uneasy smile.

"Why are you helping me?" Arashi winces at how cold she sounds. It's not like she wants to be mean to Nishinoya, but she's never felt this way before about anyone. When he smiles at her it makes her feel like she's having a heart attack. When he doesn't smile at her it makes her feel like her heart is breaking.

She realizes there's a huge difference.

When Nishinoya turns around she doesn't expect his easy smile back on his face, "no reason. I just want to." Nishinoya turns back around, both coolers in hand, leaving Arashi like he did on the bus on day one.

And then she get's it. There doesn't have to be a reason. There's no catch, no one is trying to pull anything over on her. When Arashi truly let her guard down she had the most fun she's had in a long long time. She wasn't worried about the first years motives. Any of the team's motives. When it came to volleyball, Arashi understood. There doesn't have to be a reason to want to do well, to want to be a better player. To want something better for yourself.

"I want to, too!" Arashi yells, worried to miss her chance a second time.

Nishinoya stops and turns around. He doesn't have a smile on his face, more of a pout. His eyebrows are drawn together in confusion, "you want to what, Arashi?"

"I want to get to know you, too."

The smile is back on his face and there goes Arashi's heart again. Instead of feeling angry or snapping at the older boy, Arashi tries her own smile on and runs to meet the boy waiting for her.

Because she'd rather have a racing heart than a broken one any day.


End file.
